Workplace unrest in New Zealand, described as alarming six months ago, has eased with fewer employees now considering actively looking, applying for or changing jobs, according to the latest workplace L.E.A.D. Survey of Leadership Management Australasia (LMA). But the survey showed that half of all employees are still considering changing jobs.
In this issue, two of New Zealand’s most esteemed business leaders, Sir Stephen Tindall and Sir Ron Carter, discuss what they think are the key ingredients required for New Zealand businesses to be successful internationally … the NZ Institute’s latest chapter in its “Plugging the Gap” series adds its thoughts and suggestions on this subject … and we discover many of our fast growing tech companies are already punching above their weight globally.
Advice to the Government on savings was included in yesterday’s Monetary Policy Statement from the Reserve Bank. Essentially, it was that it’s easier for a Government to clean up its act in the savings department than it is to persuade the public to change their savings behaviour, says economic commentator Bob Edlin.
New Zealand businesses have again punched above their weight in the annual Asia Pacific Deloitte Technology Fast 500 index of the region’s fastest growing tech businesses, with 50 making the list. Leading the list of New Zealand’s businesses was online accounting system provider Xero, headed by high profile entrepreneur Rod Drury, which was ranked eighth on the index, with a staggering 2,250% growth. The is the first time a Kiwi business has made the Asia Pacific Tech Fast 500’s top 10.
Business leader and chairman of Kea, Sir Stephen Tindall, wants to do more to harness the full potential of the powerful global network of Kiwi expatriates – not only abroad but at home as well. Kea has a searchable database of more than 25,000 expats working in 187 countries around the world. “But not many home-based Kiwi businesses know about that,” he says.
A decade-long research project, which has surveyed more 10,000 firms in over 20 countries and interviewed hundreds of CEOs to identify some basic practices that every manager should follow, has boiled down the essentials of successful management to three key things: rigorous monitoring, the setting of challenging targets and effective rewards and incentives.
Sean Plunket took time out from his role as joint MC at the 2010 Deloitte/Management magazine Top 200 awards to interview Ebos’ Mark Waller, winner of the Executive of the Year award, and Keith Reynolds, chief executive of Beca, Company of the Year award winner.
